TERMS AND CONDITIONS
By completing and submitting an entry to the 2027 JUNO Awards, the individual or organization (including its directors, officers, employees and other representatives) submitting the entry (the “Submitter”) agrees to the following Terms and Conditions.
1. Submission fees become the property of CARAS and are non-refundable except where required by law or otherwise determined by CARAS. Payment must be received by the final deadline. The Submitter is solely responsible for any costs in connection with their payment (e.g. banking fees) and for ensuring their payment is received by any applicable deadlines. Physical materials submitted for Album Artwork of the Year will not be returned and may be recycled or donated after the JUNO Awards cycle.
2. CARAS (in its sole discretion) may determine that an entry is incomplete if any required payment, information, materials, signatures or nominee confirmations are missing, or if any submitted materials are illegible, inaccurate, inaccessible, corrupted or otherwise deficient.
3. Entries deemed complete will be reviewed by CARAS and the applicable Music Advisory Committee to determine eligibility and category placement. CARAS or the Music Advisory Committee may request supporting information or seek guidance from the CARAS Nominating & Voting Chairs, Board of Directors or other qualified advisors. CARAS may determine that an entry is ineligible, move it to another category or disqualify it for non-compliance. If CARAS notifies the Submitter that an entry may be ineligible or moved to another category, the Submitter will have three (3) calendar days from the date notice is sent to provide a written response and supporting information. After considering any timely response, the decision of CARAS or the applicable decision-making body will be final and binding.
4. If the total number of submissions for a category is less than fifteen (15), the category may be placed on hiatus from the current year’s voting process.
- All categories and Category Criteria will be reviewed following each JUNO Awards cycle by CARAS Academy Operations, in consultation with the CARAS President & CEO. Any proposed additions, removals, mergers, renaming or other amendments will be submitted to the CARAS Board of Directors for consideration and approval.
5. The Submitter is solely responsible for ensuring that all elements of theSubmitter’s entry are authorized and non-infringing and that all permissions, licences, clearances and consents required to submit and use the entry for the JUNO Awards process have been obtained. This includes rights relating to master recordings, compositions, samples, interpolations, artwork, photographs, videos, trademarks, names, likenesses, performances and personal information. CARAS may require supporting documentation of any authorizations and may reject or disqualify an entry, nominee or winner, or revoke a nomination or award, if supporting documentation is not provided in a timely manner and/or to CARAS’ satisfaction in its sole discretion.
6. A submission may be entered into any or all crossover categories provided that the Categories are classified as Non-Genre Categories, Genre Categories, Crossover Categories and Technical Categories, as identified in the “Making Multiple Submissions” section of the Criteria That Cross All Categories.
The same artist, group or project may be submitted in only one Non-Genre Category and only one Genre Category. Duplicate submissions in additional Non-Genre or Genre Categories will be disqualified and no refund will be issued.
The same artist, group or project may be submitted in all Crossover Categories and Technical Categories for which it meets the applicable Category Criteria. However, the same project may be submitted to only one of the following categories: Global Music Album of the Year, South Asian Music Recording of the Year or Latin Music Recording of the Year
7. By submitting an entry, the Submitter acknowledges that the entry has not been nominated. Nominees are determined through the process described in the applicable Criteria by Category and will be announced through official CARAS and JUNO Awards channels. Submitting an entry does not guarantee eligibility, nomination or a JUNO Award.
8. Eligible audio materials may be distributed electronically, including to JUNO Award judges and CARAS Academy Delegates through the Digital Media Distribution System (DMDS), operated by Yangaroo Inc., or through another secure platform selected by CARAS. Streaming and download permissions may differ by user type, category, voting round and platform. CARAS may implement reasonable access, security and digital-rights-management controls, in CARAS’ sole discretion.
9. The Submitter represents and warrants that they have the authority to submit the entry and grant the rights described in these Terms and Conditions. The Submitter grants CARAS a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free and fully transferrable licence to reproduce, encode, host, transmit, stream, make available and, where permitted by CARAS, allow secure download of the entry solely to administer, screen, verify, judge, vote on, audit and preserve the official record of the JUNO Awards (the “Licence”). CARAS may exercise the Licence Licence directly or may authorize persons acting on CARAS’ behalf or in connection with the administration of the JUNO Awards to do so, including, without limitation, CARAS’ personnel, representatives, contractors, service providers, ,, judges, CARAS Academy Delegates, auditors Yangaroo Inc. for the DMDS service described in paragraph 8, and other third parties. For the avoidance of doubt, ownership of the intellectual property in an entry remains with the applicable rights holders, and the only rights granted to CARAS are the Licence as described in this paragraph 9.
10. By submitting an entry, the Submitter agrees that the following provisions will apply if the entry results in a nomination. Where the Submitter is acting on the nominee’s behalf, the Submitter represents and warrants that they are authorized to agree to these provisions on the nominee’s behalf:
- (i) confirm the nominee’s eligibility for and compliance with these Terms and Conditions and the applicable submission and Category Criteria;
- (ii) grant to CARAS, its related companies, licensees (including, without limitation, CARAS’s broadcast and production partners), successors, assigns, suppliers, agents, sponsors and any third party acting for, promoting or providing services on behalf of CARAS (collectively, the “CARAS Parties”) all rights and permissions reasonably required in connection with the nominee’s participation, appearance and performance, if applicable, in the JUNO Awards and other CARAS-related events and activities, including the JUNO Gala Dinner & Awards, The JUNO Awards Broadcast, JUNO Week events and JUNO TV or other
- (iii) grant to the CARAS Parties the right to photograph, record, reproduce, edit, publish, exhibit, communicate, make available, broadcast, stream, distribute and otherwise use the nominee’s name, approved biographical information, picture, portrait, likeness, voice, interview, statements, appearance, performance, audio-video recording and reasonable excerpts from the submission in connection with the nominee’s nomination or participation in the JUNO Awards, JUNO Week, JUNO marketing or content, and other CARAS-related events and activities;
- (iv) acknowledge and agree that the rights granted under subsection (iii) include use by CARAS sponsors in connection with their sponsorship and promotion of the JUNO Awards, JUNO Week and other CARAS-related events and activities, including use in sponsor promotional materials, provided that the use does not expressly or implicitly state or imply the nominee’s endorsement of the sponsor or its products or services. These rights are granted worldwide, in perpetuity, in all media now known or later developed;
- (v) release the CARAS Parties from claims arising from or relating to the nominee’s authorized participation, appearance or performance in the JUNO Awards, JUNO Week or other CARAS-related events and activities, to the full extent permitted by law;
- (vi) waive all moral rights in favour of the CARAS Parties in connection with the uses authorized under these Terms and Conditions; and
- (vii) take any further reasonable action and sign any additional documentation or further instruments required to give effect to this paragraph and these Terms and Conditions.
11. The Submitter must provide a suitable, current and properly cleared artist image. After nominees are announced, image changes are subject to CARAS approval in CARAS’ sole discretion. If an image is missing, of insufficient quality or otherwise unusable, CARAS may request a replacement. If an appropriate replacement is not provided within the period specified by CARAS, CARAS may substitute another current image for which the required rights have been obtained, and Submitter hereby waives any claims in connection with such substituted image.
12. CARAS and service providers acting on its behalf may collect, use and disclose personally identifiable information relating to the Submitter and/or other individuals (“Personal Information”), including that supplied with an entry. Such Personal Information may be used for the following purposes: (i) to receive and verify entries; (ii) determine eligibility and credits; (iii) administer screening, judging and voting; (iv) communicate with Submitters and proposed nominees; (v) prevent fraud and protect the integrity of the JUNO Awards; (vi) produce and publicize the JUNO Awards, including, without limitation, the JUNO Awards Broadcast; and (vii) maintain CARAS’s official awards records. If an entry is nominated or wins, CARAS may publicly disclose Personal Information customarily associated with the nomination or award, including, without limitation, names, credits, entry titles, categories, approved biographies and images. Service providers may process Personal Information in or outside Canada . The Submitter hereby consents to the collection, use and disclosure of the Personal Information for the purposes described in this paragraph 12 and as otherwise contemplated in these Terms and Conditions. In the event that any Personal Information relates to any person(s) other than Submitter, the Submitter hereby represents and warrants to CARAS that the Submitter is authorized to provide such Personal Information concerning other individuals and has delivered any notice or obtained any consent required by law. Further information is available in the CARAS Privacy Policy, which is hereby incorporated into and made a part of these Terms and Conditions.
13. CARAS shall have the right to reject or disqualify an entry, remove or suspend a nominee, or revoke an award where CARAS, in its sole discretion, determines or suspects that there has been any violation of these Terms and Conditions, the Category Criteria or another applicable CARAS policy, including, without limitation, in the following circumstances: (i) materially false or misleading information has been provided; (ii) any rights or credit defect; (iii) prohibited conduct; (iv) any other circumstances that may compromise the eligibility, fairness, integrity or reputation of the JUNO Awards. CARAS may also act where information concerning conduct by a Submitter or nominee creates any risk of harm to CARAS, the JUNO Awards, participants or the public. CARAS may, in its sole discretion, provide the affected party/ies with notice and a reasonable opportunity to respond before making a final decision, or CARAS may take interim action while reviewing the matter or make a determination without prior notice to the affected party/ies. If a nomination or award is revoked, CARAS shall have no further obligation to the Submitter and/or any other affected party/ies, and CARAS may take such action as its reasonably determines in its sole discretion, including, without limitation, revising its records and public materials, requiring the return of any award, statuette or certificate, and determine the appropriate treatment of the category in accordance with the applicable voting process. Entry fees will not be refunded following disqualification or revocation except where required by law.
14. To the maximum extent permitted by law, CARAS will not be responsible for any claims, liabilities or costs arising from: (i) lost, damaged, copied or stolen submission materials arising from any cause, including negligence of CARAS and/or any third party acting on behalf of CARAS or any of the CARAS Parties; (ii) any failure by CARAS and/or any third party acting on behalf of CARAS or any of the CARAS Parties to give notices or to apply CARAS’s policies and procedures in a consistent manner; (iii) any entry that is late, incomplete, misdirected, inaccessible, corrupted, lost, damaged, copied or stolen because of the Submitter, a third-party network or service, equipment failure, unauthorized access despite reasonable safeguards, or circumstances beyond CARAS’s reasonable control; without limiting the foregoing, CARAS does not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free operation of a submission, distribution or voting platform and may extend a deadline, request resubmission or use an alternate process to address a material system issue. The Submitter hereby waives, and hereby releases CARAS and all third parties acting on behalf of CARAS from, any and all claims the Submitter or any other person (including any individuals named in any entry submitted by the Submitter) may have in connection with any of the foregoing. Nothing in these Terms and Conditions excludes or limits liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.
15. The Submitter must disclose any material use of generative artificial intelligence, synthetic voice, digital replica, voice cloning, image generation or similar technology (“AI”) in creating an entry or a contribution for which an individual may receive recognition. Only human creators may be identified as nominees or receive a JUNO Award. A work containing AI-generated material may be eligible only where the human creative contribution is meaningful, more than minimal, and relevant to the category in which the work is entered. An entry must not include any unauthorized content, including, without limitation, any digital replica, cloned voice, likeness, performance or biometric attribute of another person. CARAS may request further information and may disqualify an entry where the disclosure is incomplete or misleading, the required human contribution is not established, or required permissions have not been obtained.
16. A Submitter, proposed nominee or person acting on their behalf must not: (i) offer or accept money, gifts, benefits or consideration in exchange for a vote, entry, nomination or other JUNO Awards advantage; (ii) coordinate vote trading or bloc voting; (iii) improperly influence or harass judges or CARAS Academy Delegates; (iv) obtain or misuse confidential voter information; (v) manipulate eligibility data, sales, streams or audience metrics; (vi) interfere with the security or integrity of the Awards process; or (vii) otherwise violate any CARAS policies or act in any manner which may cause harm to CARAS, the JUNO Awards, participants or the public. CARAS may investigate suspected misconduct, request supporting information, and take such corrective action as CARAS may determine in its sole discretion.
17. These Terms and Conditions, the applicable Category Criteria and all incorporated CARAS policies (including, without limitation, the CARAS Privacy Policy form the agreement concerning the entry. Ontario law applies and the courts located in Toronto, Ontario have jurisdiction. If any provision is finally determined to be unenforceable, the remainder of these provisions continue in effect. Any delay in exercising a right is not a waiver. The English and French versions are equally authoritative.